Morphology made-to-fit for Newcastle's New Annual

Newcastle’s manufacturing legacy will come to the fore in a unique way this month during the city’s popular cultural festival, New Annual. 

Locals and visitors alike have an opportunity to explore, remember and reimagine our industrial history, and its people, through a rare celebration of creativity and art.

Morphology, hosted in the incredible Soap Factory fabrication workshop by in-house furniture designer/makers Jonathan Everett (Everett Creative) and Hannah Cheetham (Built In-Kind), features seven days of public access workshops – from Friday 27 September to Thursday 3 October, while collectively imagining, designing and fabricating a large sculptural piece from waste furniture.

The pair will also instruct community participants in the use of tools and joinery techniques at the Mayfield East location.

Then, on the final three days of New Annual, the sculpture is scheduled to be installed in Wheeler Place, where everyone can view the finished work.

“Prepare to immerse yourself in an explosion of creativity,” Cheetham said.

“Participants are invited to bring an old piece of furniture, something old, something broken, something precious but obsolete.

“Facilitators will guide them to dismember and re-assemble these old furnishings, taking these items and re-composing into a single collective sculptural artwork.

Prepare to immerse yourself in an explosion of creativity.

Hannah Cheetham

“That will be organically developed with input from all participants, guided by the expert team of makers.

“As well, they’re urged to etch poems, thoughts, stories and memories into the work as design features.

“Beyond the immediate drama of the chaos of the piece, the work will have a strong design element, simplicity in its form – exploring the idea of expressing ’memory’.

“So, on the weekend of 5 and 6 October, I encourage everyone to visit Morphology in the heart of Newcastle’s CBD.

“To build this sculpture from the refuse of our society and the eddies of our own homes is an act of resurrection and faith in the forgotten and the broken: a reminder that we can make whole… and holy, that which others have discarded.”

New Annual starts from 27 September and continues until 6 October, offering a vibrant mix of immersive dance, music, circus, visual art and theatre.

Meet the Morphology hosts

Jonathan (Jono) Everett – Everett Creative

Craftsman, furniture maker, artist and designer, Jono is engaged by architects, museums and art galleries.

He has produced work as varied as furniture for the Prime Minister’s suite in Parliament House through to designing and delivering the Supernova Science Centre for the Newcastle Museum.

He’s exhibited one-off pieces nationally and internationally, too.

Jono’s story defines how all good design stems from the same set of rules and, if realised and practiced, can liberate the designer into a world of opportunities, projects and creative collaborations.

He is currently co-managing the Soap Factory, a Newcastle’s maker’s enterprise.

Hannah Cheetham – Built In-Kind

Working on Awabakal land, Hannah holds a Masters of Architecture and boasts an extensive and varied background in the construction and fabrication industries.

Her practice Built In-Kind is deeply informed by a need to explore solutions to both societal and environmental stressors experienced when living in a world in the throes of a changing climate and a society of unequal social privileges.

Hannah applies architecture as a solutions-focused creative discipline, which transcends the familiar field of building design.

Rather, her practice in architecture and design explores opportunities for socio-cultural, spatial, environmental and experiential interventions which can connect community to their built, natural and cultural landscapes.

Built In-Kind is a synthesis of architectural design, workshop and fabrication education, material recovery and community development. Hannah partners with various government and non-government organisations to host tool and timber fabrication classes – further empowering diverse community, particularly women in the creative/fabrication fields.

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